The Fact
HUD’s archived National Association of REALTORS® housing-affordability table shows that in 1970 the median existing-home price was $23,000, median family income was $9,867, and the income required to qualify for the median home was $6,697. Median family income was therefore about 47% above the qualifying-income figure.
What This Means
In 1970, the typical family earned well over what a lender required to buy the typical existing home. Buying a house was within comfortable reach of an ordinary middle-income family.
Sources
- U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Housing Market Conditions, Historical Data Table 11: Housing Affordability Index, 1970–Present; National Association of REALTORS® series.